Noting the philosophy behind the issue of individual privacy, the author reviews federal legislation (the 1973 Health, Education, and Welfare Report; the Privacy Act of 1974; C.H.R. 1984 designed to extend provisions of the Privacy Act to the private sector) and state legislation, concluding with suggested guidelines for future legislation. (JT)

Individual privacy, suggests a Swedish judge, must be protected by restricting the kinds of personal data collected and the uses to which it will be put, and by preventing erroneous information to be used. An issue is whether personal data in education files can be used in conjunction with data in other files. (Author/LBH)

Argues for abortion rights and protection of intimate decisions and relationships. Describes the role and position of women in eighteenth century American society as a means of exposing the fallacy of the anti-abortion movement's insistence on adherence to constitutional text. Discusses the recent attempts to overturn the Roe v. Wade ruling. (PS)

The authors discuss precedent-setting court litigation concerning the employee's right to personal relationships, including relationships with co-workers and with employees of competitors. Information presented includes both public and private employers. They also discuss the tension between the employee's right to privacy and the employer's…

Urges policymakers to examine and update their school system's child abuse reporting policy. Such policies must be adequate to help endangered children, protect their right to privacy, and avoid overprotection. Advises on ways to protect staff against unnecessary accusations and develop inservice training programs discussing child abuse, state…

Review of employment laws affecting libraries includes definitions of qualified personnel, laws pertaining to medical and honesty testing, affirmative action, and sexual harassment. Laws covering crime within libraries are also discussed, as well as problems with existing legislation. (CLB)

Surveyed attitudes toward the importance of privacy, seriousness of various privacy invasions, organizations that are trusted or mistrusted, etc. Concluded, among other findings, that most respondents were wary of possible invasions of privacy by the government but preferred government regulation of data collection by private businesses to…

A recent Supreme Court decision on a First Amendment case involving a teacher in Texas illustrates how teachers' and other public employees' rights to freedom of speech face serious erosion. The problem is deciding whether grievances fall into the protected area of "public concern" or the unprotected area of a "purely private…

Court rulings and legislation are cited in a discussion of institutionalized mentally retarded persons' rights to privacy. The authors emphasize the need to restructure job responsibilities and/or descriptions to ensure appropriate resident-staff relations for dressing, bathing, toileting, and other private activities. (CL)

The pros and cons of financial disclosure laws of varying strictness and their effects on school board members are discussed. Recent trends are noted and a tabulation is provided of the statutory requirements concerning disclosure of personal finances and campaign contributions in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. (PGD)

Computers make possible a variety of investigative and enforcement techniques. However, the technology of systematic data searching is subject to at least six sources of error, e.g., incorrectly entered data, none of which can be completely eliminated. Thus, a thought police as envisioned by Orwell remains a technological fiction. (RM)

Examines educational tasks in general computing, including computer-assisted instruction, computer-managed instruction, word processing, secretarial and business applications, time sharing, and networking to larger computers. (CT)

Notes that both liberals and conservatives have criticized values clarification courses on the grounds that they assume only one correct position regarding values: ethical relativism. Maintains that values clarification fails to live up to its own claims of openness and neutrality. (Author/JM)

Reviews recent federal publications on government information, particularly in the area of general informational services, public access to government information and privacy issues, coordination of government information systems, and congressional information needs. (Author)

Online users leave traces that others can find and use. Provides an overview of where and how users leave traces and what users can do to protect their privacy. Discusses Internet accounts; special files ("signature,""plan,""project,""file,""finger,""whois," and "vacation");…